1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a vehicle side section structure around a lower end portion of a front pillar.
2. Related Art
In a vehicle side section structure described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open (JP-A) No. 2001-253365 (Patent Document 1), a weakened portion is provided at a lower end portion of a lower pillar. The weakened portion is set with a thinner plate thickness than at other locations. When a front wheel that has been shunted backward in a vehicle front end collision contacts the lower pillar, the weakened portion deforms, absorbing collision energy.
When a colliding body (barrier) is in a front end collision with a vehicle further to the vehicle width direction outside than a front side member of the vehicle (known as a small overlap collision), the colliding body and the vehicle can be moved apart in the vehicle width direction by promoting toe-out of the front wheel (a state in which a front end portion of the front wheel is positioned on the vehicle width direction outside) that contacts the lower pillar. For related inventions, see JP-A No. H05-85414 (Patent Document 2) or JP-A No. 2013-141928 (Patent Document 3).
However, in the vehicle side section structure described above, although the weakened portion is provided at a portion of the lower pillar facing the front wheel, there is no reference to promoting toe-out of the front wheel when the front wheel contacts the lower pillar. The vehicle side section structure described above accordingly leaves room for improvement in this respect.